Katanin Contributes to Interspecies Spindle Length Scaling in Xenopus

SummaryBipolar spindles must separate chromosomes by the appropriate distance during cell division, but mechanisms determining spindle length are poorly understood. Based on a 2D model of meiotic spindle assembly, we predicted that higher localized microtubule (MT) depolymerization rates could generate the shorter spindles observed in egg extracts of X. tropicalis compared to X. laevis. We found that katanin-dependent MT severing was increased in X. tropicalis, which, unlike X. laevis, lacks an inhibitory phosphorylation site in the katanin p60 catalytic subunit. Katanin inhibition lengthened spindles in both species. In X. tropicalis, k-fiber MT bundles that connect to chromosomes at their kinetochores extended through spindle poles, disrupting them. In both X. tropicalis extracts and the spindle simulation, a balance between k-fiber number and MT depolymerization is required to maintain spindle morphology. Thus, mechanisms have evolved in different species to scale spindle size and coordinate regulation of multiple MT populations in order to generate a robust steady-state structure.

Graphical AbstractFigure optionsDownload high-quality image (256 K)Download as PowerPoint slideHighlights
► Modeling predicts that microtubule destabilization regulates meiotic spindle length
► Spindle length correlates with katanin-mediated microtubule severing in egg extracts
► An Aurora B phosphorylation site found in X. laevis katanin inhibits its activity
► Katanin activity helps coordinate stability of spindle microtubules and k-fibers